Official 'The Hobbit' Thread - - - - - Part 14

[Marvolo]

They should have released this in summer like they originally planned. Now they're going to start tinkering with it because they have too much time on their hands.

I agree. We know Jackson wont use this extra time to make the cgi look decent. He'll probably just add on even more sub standard cgi.

 

[Hunter Rider]

I finally saw Desolation of Smaug last night, not sure how much of it is from the book and it did feel padded out in places, but I really liked Bard and Lake Town, and Tauriel is fantastic!

I can't deny the pace is slow but I just love spending time in Middle Earth and these films provide a nice escape, the only time I felt myself getting a little fidgety as when Bilbo and Smaug were talking, Smaug just looked too cartoony to me.

There are some stunning shots in the film, I love the reveal of the giant golden Dwarf King and the shot where Sauran's eye is revealed to Gandalf, and the entire Barrel chase is incredible, the flow is flawless and you get a real adrenaline rush with a couple of the tracking shots, great stuff!

I think the choice of where to end the film was a bit abrupt but does that mean the final film will start with a battle against Smaug in Lake Town and his defeat? If so I can see the reasoning.

I liked the first Hobbit film more but still thoroughly enjoyed DoS and can't wait to get a look at some footage from the final movie! 8/10

 

[-Arya-]

I finally saw Desolation of Smaug last night, not sure how much of it is from the book and it did feel padded out in places, but I really liked Bard and Lake Town, and Tauriel is fantastic!

I can't deny the pace is slow but I just love spending time in Middle Earth and these films provide a nice escape, the only time I felt myself getting a little fidgety as when Bilbo and Smaug were talking, Smaug just looked too cartoony to me.

There are some stunning shots in the film, I love the reveal of the giant golden Dwarf King and the shot where Sauran's eye is revealed to Gandalf, and the entire Barrel chase is incredible, the flow is flawless and you get a real adrenaline rush with a couple of the tracking shots, great stuff!

I think the choice of where to end the film was a bit abrupt but does that mean the final film will start with a battle against Smaug in Lake Town and his defeat? If so I can see the reasoning.

I liked the first Hobbit film more but still thoroughly enjoyed DoS and can't wait to get a look at some footage from the final movie! 8/10

I mostly agree with you on this, except I enjoyed this movie a lot more than the first. Yeah, Smaug did look a bit cartoony, but I wasn't bothered by it too much. Many of the cgi characters looked cartoonish anyway.

 

[Symbiotic]

Damn their inability to get a real dragon to play Smaug.

Spoiler

I kid, I kid.t:

 

[Lord]

I enjoyed the 2nd one more too, but i felt like they ended it in the worst part to, it felt like watching a video and then it ending in the middle of the events, i think they should have had less Dwarfs cartoonishly jumping around the Dragon and instead gone to that climatic battle, because that was honestly something worth for the finale of this film since the Dragon was set up for some time already and it would have ended the arc of that guy with the super arrow.

Instead, i just felt like i bought half a ticket and was denied to watch the end of my film. Smaug was well done, but i disagree with many of the statements that he was the best CGI character since Gollum, he was just another CGI character like the ones we see in most modern blockbusters, and honestly, i've also been very impressed by Davy Jones from the Pirates films, he'd be the one i would call the best CGI character since Gollum. King Kong from the latest remake was very impressive too.

 

[Brem]

Spoiler

I finally saw Desolation of Smaug last night, not sure how much of it is from the book and it did feel padded out in places, but I really liked Bard and Lake Town, and Tauriel is fantastic!

I can't deny the pace is slow but I just love spending time in Middle Earth and these films provide a nice escape, the only time I felt myself getting a little fidgety as when Bilbo and Smaug were talking, Smaug just looked too cartoony to me.

There are some stunning shots in the film, I love the reveal of the giant golden Dwarf King and the shot where Sauran's eye is revealed to Gandalf, and the entire Barrel chase is incredible, the flow is flawless and you get a real adrenaline rush with a couple of the tracking shots, great stuff!

I think the choice of where to end the film was a bit abrupt but does that mean the final film will start with a battle against Smaug in Lake Town and his defeat? If so I can see the reasoning.

I liked the first Hobbit film more but still thoroughly enjoyed DoS and can't wait to get a look at some footage from the final movie! 8/10

I was not keen on Desolation of Smaug until a week ago. I got the Blu-Ray, I had a quick look at it and I felt that it still had the same issues it had for me in the cinema. I didn't like the pacing, I didn't like the CGI, and overall it felt disjointed and I just couldn't get into it. I actually felt the same about Unexpected Journey as well.

However, I decided to watch Unexpected Journey, and I was surprised that I actually enjoyed it more than the last time I watched the Blu-Ray. I don't know what it was, but the pacing didn't feel as "off" as it did when I saw it in the cinema, then on Blu-Ray. I watched Smaug almost straight after, and again, it didn't feel as off as it did in the cinema, or when I scanned through it. And the CGI, while it's still annoying, isn't bothering me as much.

In other words, putting the two films together in almost one viewing has helped me to enjoy both far more than I had been, and I've watched them multiple times over the past week. Unexpected Journey more than Smaug, because I got the Extended cut soon after Smaug. But I've really been enjoying them both a lot more than I did on their release in the cinema, and on Blu-Ray.

And personally, I love where they cut off Desolation of Smaug at the end. It did feel abrupt in the cinema, but not it leaves me wanting the third film. I love a good cliffhanger like that, though.

 

[Lord]

Honestly, it's the type of thing you put in the climax of a film, not the beginning of another, makes the Dragon seem less like a boss because he stops being the final boss and instead becomes the first one for the next film.

 

[Hunter Rider]

I mostly agree with you on this, except I enjoyed this movie a lot more than the first. Yeah, Smaug did look a bit cartoony, but I wasn't bothered by it too much. Many of the cgi characters looked cartoonish anyway.

Smaug kinda felt like the dragon version of Scar from the Lion King to me, just took me out of the film.

Damn their inability to get a real dragon to play Smaug.

Spoiler

I kid, I kid.t:

It's any excuse these days, like dragons are hard to come by, pfft!

I was not keen on Desolation of Smaug until a week ago. I got the Blu-Ray, I had a quick look at it and I felt that it still had the same issues it had for me in the cinema. I didn't like the pacing, I didn't like the CGI, and overall it felt disjointed and I just couldn't get into it. I actually felt the same about Unexpected Journey as well.

However, I decided to watch Unexpected Journey, and I was surprised that I actually enjoyed it more than the last time I watched the Blu-Ray. I don't know what it was, but the pacing didn't feel as "off" as it did when I saw it in the cinema, then on Blu-Ray. I watched Smaug almost straight after, and again, it didn't feel as off as it did in the cinema, or when I scanned through it. And the CGI, while it's still annoying, isn't bothering me as much.

In other words, putting the two films together in almost one viewing has helped me to enjoy both far more than I had been, and I've watched them multiple times over the past week. Unexpected Journey more than Smaug, because I got the Extended cut soon after Smaug. But I've really been enjoying them both a lot more than I did on their release in the cinema, and on Blu-Ray.

And personally, I love where they cut off Desolation of Smaug at the end. It did feel abrupt in the cinema, but not it leaves me wanting the third film. I love a good cliffhanger like that, though.

I am lad you mentioned how they play back to back as that is my next mission, I enjoyed both but can imagine them being enhanced in tandem for the obvious reasons, I also think they aren't as instant as the LOTR films and maybe had too much weight of expectation on them for first viewings.

So if the third film kicks off with the defeat of Smaug, where does the final challenge for the heroes come from? The Necromancer?

 

[Vartha]

I've been LOVING Game of Thrones because of the DRAGONS.....the Sex is secondary.....my life's all screwed up because of the Renaissance Faire lol

Smaug kinda felt like the dragon version of Scar from the Lion King to me, just took me out of the film.



It's any excuse these days, like dragons are hard to come by, pfft!



I am lad you mentioned how they play back to back as that is my next mission, I enjoyed both but can imagine them being enhanced in tandem for the obvious reasons, I also think they aren't as instant as the LOTR films and maybe had too much weight of expectation on them for first viewings.

So if the third film kicks off with the defeat of Smaug, where does the final challenge for the heroes come from? The Necromancer?

 

[cyclone]

Film 3 is officially titled;

THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES

Inside Information...

Our journey to make The Hobbit Trilogy has been in some ways like Bilbo's own, with hidden paths revealing their secrets to us as we've gone along. “There and Back Again” felt like the right name for the second of a two film telling of the quest to reclaim Erebor, when Bilbo’s arrival there, and departure, were both contained within the second film. But with three movies, it suddenly felt misplaced—after all, Bilbo has already arrived “there” in the "Desolation of Smaug".

When we did the premiere trip late last year, I had a quiet conversation with the studio about the idea of revisiting the title. We decided to keep an open mind until a cut of the film was ready to look at. We reached that point last week, and after viewing the movie, we all agreed there is now one title that feels completely appropriate.

And so: "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" it is.

As Professor Tolkien intended, “There and Back Again” encompasses Bilbo’s entire adventure, so don’t be surprised if you see it used on a future box-set of all three movies.

Before then however, we have a film to finish, and much to share with you. It’s been a nice quiet time for us—Jabez and I happily editing away in a dark cave in Wellington—but those halcyon days are quickly coming to an end. It will soon be time to step into the light. Expect to see and hear much about The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in the coming months.

And there’s also The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Cut, which we’re in the process of finishing, with over 25 mins of new scenes, all scored with original music composed by Howard Shore.

It’ll be a fun year!

Source = Peter Jackson's official Facebook.

 

[Hunter Rider]

I dig that title.

 

[Gavan]

As Professor Tolkien intended, “There and Back Again” encompasses Bilbo’s entire adventure, so don’t be surprised if you see it used on a future box-set of all three movies.

Clever.

"The Desolation of Smaug" wasn't a good subtitle IMO. I think putting specific lore in the movie titles, like Return of the Jedi and Revenge of the Sith, is clunky. Titles should be accessible to non-followers also.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

They just have no idea what they want.

 

[cyclone]

I dig that title.

I dig that you dig that title.

 

[pepper]

I don't like it all.

'There and back again' was such a nice, almost poetic title. It sounded hopeful in a certain way and it always felt like coming full circle.

 

[green]

I'm kind of torn on it. On the one hand it's a perfectly fitting title. It just seems to me that there is sooo much more going on in the film than just the battle. There and back again seems to encompass more. End of the day though the title won't make or break it for me.

 

[Liam_H]

A more actiony title will draw in people who feel like nothing ever happens in these movies.

 

[regwec]

It's a good title for them to use. I think that fans of the previous two movies will tend to like things overblown, and the title will suggest to them that they are going to get something even more bloated than before. I am slightly surprised that we are only talking about the five armies cited in the book- but I suppose a few extra platoons of Hobbits on steam powered motorcycles can be added in post.

 

[RoboAmish]

A shame.

There And Back Again was a nice little and felt more appropriate in terms of the entire trilogy. Suggested everything coming full circle, somewhat. And, there's obviously the book connections. It just made sense.

Oh well, it's not like the trilogy has had particularly good subtitles (bar the first one) and it's certainly better than Into The Fire or whatever the rumoured new title was...

 

[Silvermoon]

If I have one issue with the name change (and I fully acknowledge this is a superficial nitpick) it's that it's acronym/initialism isn't as pretty. I mean TBOTFA?!?!? Whereas "TABA" just rolled off the tongue

 

[terry78]

Saying the first acronym out loud sounds like a disease.

 

[Marvolo]

As for acronyms, how about:

B5A
TB5A
TBFA

I like TBFA.

And there’s also The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Cut, which we’re in the process of finishing, with over 25 mins of new scenes, all scored with original music composed by Howard Shore.

 

[regwec]

I quite like "BOFA", since it sounds like one of the Dwarves.

 

[Drizzle]

I'm fine with the new title. Hopefully this means a trailer is on the horizon, since to my knowledge, the only thing we've seen of the third film is a still shot of Bard and Legolas.

 

[Marvolo]

I'm fine with the new title. Hopefully this means a trailer is on the horizon, since to my knowledge, the only thing we've seen of the third film is a still shot of Bard and Legolas.

We got the first trailer for DOS in June. Im guessing the earliest we will get a trailer for BOFA is with Godzilla (May 16) or Jupiter Ascending (July 18) at the latest is.